Math Everywhere: Mathematical Concepts and Reasoning in our Modern World

MATH181

Mathematics is essential in our modern world. Mathematical concepts and reasoning play an important role in making many of our actions possible. Communicating and storing not only data but also images or music reliably; getting insight into the role played by social networks in our society; evaluating assessments based on statistics; designing fun visuals for video games or animated movies -- all of these make use of mathematics. And all of these are topics discussed in Math Everywhere. This course is designed for those who haven't had college mathematics but would like to understand some of the mathematical concepts behind these and other important modern applications. The course focuses on building understanding rather than developing mathematical skills. It will consist of 6 largely independent units, each taking between 2 and 3 weeks. There will be handout texts, recommended reading material, online units to work through examples, and weekly homeworks. The midterm and final exams will be writing assignments.